Lemons and Chocolate with a Cherry on Top
by delusionofcontrol
Summary: Karmy AU: A new girl becomes a regular customer in the Ashcrofts' new and improved organic café where Karma does all the baked delights. There's one problem though. The new customer seems to be not a fan of them. (one shot)


**A/N: First ever (published) one shot for Karmy. I had other unfinished ones but finally here's one up! Read and review.**

_**Inspired by a Bubbleline AU comic by iwannakissallama from Tumblr**_

* * *

After years of selling organic juices in farmers' markets and roaming around Austin with the mobile truck, Good Karma actually hit it up and leveled up into a café. Who would've thought and expected that her not-so-normal parents would actually have a good business with all the organic juices they're making? Karma was happy for them anyway and with that, she helped with the family business.

Karma's parents did their thing with the juices while Karma thought of getting back into her hobby, which is baking. She's not that into organic food but she learned some recipes from her mom and compromised with everything in the menu by making some organic and not.

After months of running the café, the Ashcrofts were surprised and impressed with the outcome. They had regular customers and Karma was enthralled that they also love her baked goods.

She dedicated some of her time after school in the café; she'd serve and wait tables at four in the afternoon until seven. It was an agreement with her dad that she can't stay late until closing time because she still had to study.

It's not that bad. She gets to bake, see customers happy with their food and maybe get to talk to some cute people once in a while. She's satisfied with it even if she has no social life at all (she never really had). She gets paid a little anyway so it's good.

Everything was going great until Karma noticed something as the school started. Every day at five, a girl (a very pretty one) comes to their café and sits in one particular spot. It's like she knew that there's not that many people coming in that particular hour of the day. It's kind of surprising for Karma, since their café isn't really popular to kids her age and this new customer is making a regular in the place. Karma may have seen her once or twice somewhere else, and she realised that she's the new girl in her class but she never really knew her name. She never talked to her and she haven't seen her talk to anyone either. She keeps her space so Karma didn't really bother.

As the days go, the same thing happens. At the first three weeks she's been visiting the café, the blonde girl tries everything in their menu for every single day. Karma's had this habit of watching her from afar and taking note of every reaction she does as she tastes the food she ordered. The brunette seems to have fun with it; seeing the other girl raise her eyebrows, cover her nose, scrunch her face, maybe cough once or twice at some organic juice or coffee that Karma herself didn't like too and more other facial expressions that gives entertainment for Karma even just for half an hour of every day in the quiet and incense-smelling café.

After a while, the girl seemed to find matches with every food she orders and Karma learns what she often buys until she further notices that the blonde orders the same thing after a month and a half.

_Lucas's Lemonade and a chocolate fudge cherry cake. A weird match but great choice._ She thought.

It's a routine. The same girl comes in at five, sits at her spot with a tablet in hand, watching some kind of documentary or show Karma's never familiar with, orders the same thing and leaves at five forty-five.

It's nice that she's a regular and Karma shouldn't be bothered by anything she does but she is.

As she continues to watch her every time she stays in the café, she can't help noticing that the girl drinks the lemonade, but only eats the one or two top cherries, takes a little bit of chocolate fudge on her finger to taste and leaves the rest of the cake. And when she cleans her spot after the girl left, there's always a cherry stem knot by the plate. Well, she pays for everything and that's more than fine but the cake's barely touched.

She should just care for the money but of course, she makes the cookies and cakes in the café and everyone loves it. The blonde's order's even the best one! She just doesn't understand why that girl just orders the same and leaves the whole thing again and again. It's like a slap in the face with chocolate fudge all over her and a cherry on top of her nose.

* * *

She started getting paranoid and a bit anxious.

"Mom, are my cakes bad?" She asked one afternoon after the girl had left.

"No, honey. They're great." Her mom smiled at her before going back to her customer.

She sighed.

_Of course, she's my mom. I shouldn't have asked her._

* * *

Karma randomly asked her brother, Zen, as she went right in after school for her shift.

"Zen, tell me the truth. Do my cakes taste bad?" She looked at him straight in the eye while her hands tied her hair up in a bun.

"No. Why'd you ask?" Zen raised an eyebrow at her before going back to making coffee. Karma followed.

"You see, there's a girl who's always coming here at five, orders the same juice and cake and leaves right after."

"Oh, the blonde who's like your age?"

"Yeah. She drinks the lemonade but doesn't really eat the cake."

"That's odd." He tilted his head but kept his eyes on the coffee.

"I know!" She whispered. "I'm kind of insulted and worried at the same time. I don't know what her deal is." Zen kept quiet and waited for her to continue.

"I wanted to talk to her. The other night, I even practiced in my room in front of the mirror how to ask her about it. But I never really got to do it because she has this uninterested face at everything and I'm scared of what she'll say." Karma crossed her arms and sighed deeply.

"Maybe you should just let it pass or if it'll really calm you, go talk to her today. Just prepare yourself for it." Zen gave her a small smile and tapped her shoulder. She shrugged and went back to her corner and started to do her job. She scribbled on her notepad and pursed her lips. She looked at her watch and back to her pen.

_I'm gonna talk to her today._

* * *

Half past five and her chair was empty. Karma looked around, thinking maybe she just missed her coming in and went to sit in another spot. She glanced at every spot in the room, secretly looking for the girl, but nothing.

_Maybe today's not that day after all._

The door opened and a girl came in, went straight ahead to a certain spot and pulled out her tablet.

_Or maybe it is._

Karma gathered up all the courage in her and went to the girl. As she approached, the blonde noticed and pulled out her earphones.

"I'd hav-"

"No." Karma said sternly.

"What?" The girl was puzzled.

"Here's the thing. I know your order, the Lucas's Lemonade and the chocolate fudge cherry cake. It's the usual but I want you to tell me why you never eat the cake. I'm the one who makes the pastries every day and I'm sure that everyone who buys them loves them. I wake up early and stay up a little late for those cakes, go to school like every teenager does, work and do other things that god-knows-what. I want to know why my efforts aren't good enough and maybe going in to waste."

The blonde was surprised, her mouth slightly open. The brunette in front of her just finished a long straight rant to her with her chest heaving. Karma's hands are on the table. She was slightly leaning forward in front of the blonde, staring right at the girl's wonderful green eyes…

And everything was awkward.

They just stared at each other for a moment and they didn't even bother looking at the other people in the place.

It turned really silent and awkward.

_Oops._

Karma's glare at the regular customer slowly faded and her eyes bulged. She started feeling hot on her cheeks and she's sure that they're getting red now.

Oh god.

She blinked and retrieved her hands from the table. She felt so embarrassed at what she did that she looked down on her fiddling hands. The other girl blinked, changing her face in her usual one and started to speak.

"I- It's just that too much chocolate gives me migraine."

Karma slowly looked at her, confused.

"So why do you always order it? Why not other cakes that won't give you migraine or something?"

"It has cherries and I get to taste a little chocolate." The girl shrugged.

"Plus, I just want an excuse to see you every day."

Karma froze and blushed even harder. The girl just looked at her with the same expression but with a different glint in her eyes. Karma can't even bring herself to glance at the other girl.

"So you make the cakes here?"

"Yes."

"Bring me the usual."

"Okay. Sorry for all the blabbering and trouble…" She bit her lip.

"It's alright." Her lips somewhat curved into a little smile.

Karma looked at her one last time and nodded. She walked briskly back to the kitchen and asked Zen to bring the girl the usual. She was so embarrassed of what have happened that she has no guts to do it herself. She stayed inside the kitchen and sulked there for what seemed like hours. After thirty minutes of the incident, she peeped through the window and checked.

The chair was empty again as always and she was quite relieved.

She went out to clean up the table as she always does after she leaves. As she neared the table, she noticed something different this time.

She looked at the table and was surprised to see an empty glass and a plate with a fork and only a cherry stem knot on it.

A smile tugged on her lips as she gathered them up and went back to the kitchen. Her heart almost jumped out of her chest for joy.

_My cake's not so bad after all._


End file.
